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Job Sector Guides

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Overview of Job Sector Guides

With the work and leadership of the Bonner Foundation staff team and the 2018 National Bonner Interns, six sector guides have bene developed as a start to this resource. The intention and goal for these sector guides are to:

Provide undergraduate students and alumni with a useful, concise resource about the job sector and careers in it that might interest them
Provide Bonner Programs on campuses with a practical resource to integrate into Bonner Meetings, trainings, and reflections
Incorporate relevant information and point to places that student and other users can learn more
Not recreate other existing and much more comprehensive sources (like books, graduate school guides, and career services resources)
Incorporate the wisdom, perspectives, and advice of Bonner Scholar and Leader alumni who have made their way into these sectors and give current students a way to connect with their alumni peers, especially to enhance their professional networks

Many resources for undergraduates to find out about jobs, careers, and graduate schools do exist (like US News and World Report, the Princeton Review, and so on). Not as many emphasize careers in the education and nonprofit sector, which one third of our alumni have taken. Additionally, many may not discuss work in the public sector (like government) or discuss how graduates who choose the private sector might leverage their values and experience. In our research, we have found that existing resources may not always emphasize the types of information that Bonner Scholars and Leaders and civically engaged alumni are interested in, such as:

How Bonner Alumni might live out their values in these sectors and professions
Recommendations from other Bonner Alumni about how to gain access and succeed in these sectors
Recommendations of internships, organizations, and graduate programs
Personal accounts and connections to Bonner Alumni themselves

Each job sector guide includes a similar structure with the following headings:

Overview and Careers in the Sector: this is an introduction to the sector and a listing of some of the prominent jobs and positions in it that might attract Bonner graduates. This information has drawn on research and interviews.
Average Salaries: the sector guides includes a table with average salaries for a few of those prominent jobs in four locations - nationally, in New Jersey, in North Carolina, and in Colorado. We chose these locations based on the composition of the Bonner Network and to illustrate regional differences in the cost of living and salary structures. This information is obtained from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and a link in the guide will allow students and users to access the national database of information to perform their own specific position and location searches.
Preparation Required: this section points to the type of educational and experiential preparation typically required to advance in the sector.
Connection to Bonner Values: this section points to key themes and insights generated from talking with Bonner graduates and other engaged professionals about how they attempt to live out the Common Commitments in their careers.
Considerations: this section highlights a few of the advantages and disadvantages that alumni or other employees in the sector report. Such considerations may include income, working demands, wellness, and other related themes.
Recommendations from Bonner Alumni and Bonner Alumni in This Field: this section highlights a few Bonner Alumni who have also participated in Bonner Profiles that can be read or work in the Bonner Network that may be contacted for more information. The Foundation's hope is to continue to build out this resource and list, especially as we launch a Bonner Alumni Directory in 2019.
Literature: each guide highlights just a few (five or so) current and prominent books, articles, or resources you might want to read about the sector. Again, many of these sectors have published scholarship that students and graduates should consult.
Journals: each guide highlights some professional journals and sources of current literature, studies, and scholarship about the field. These are the kinds of journals that students who pursue graduate study in the sector will find themselves researching and reviewing, or potentially publishing in.
Professional Associations and Organizations: each sector guide highlights some prominent organizations that students and graduates might want to learn about through further internet research, outreach, job searches, and other avenues.

Given Foundation staffing and priorities, we do not imagine that we will update these resources often. Nonetheless, we hope to research and write additional sector guides in the next few years. Furthermore, with the help of Bonner Alumni, we may be able to expand them and their ability to connect students and recent graduates to alumni in these sectors via the Alumni Directory and other strategies. If you are interested in helping to write a Job Sector Guide or Bonner Alumni Profile, please contact Arthur Tartee Jr. (Alumni Network Manager) at arthur@bonner.org.